Notes and Editorial Reviews

Mezzo-soprano Marianne Crebassa and pianist Faz?l Say share some tantalising, captivating and sensuousSecretsin this album of songs, centred on Debussy’sTrois Chansons de Bilitis, Ravel’sShéhérazadeand Faz?l Say’s ownGezi Park 3– which he and Crebassa premiered in 2014. Describing the recording sessions, Marianne Crebassa says: “Sometimes we worked in a kind of trance … there were some moments when nothing seemed to exist around us …”Secretsincludes Debussy’s discreetly eroticTrois Chansons de Bilitis, settings of texts by Pierre Louÿs that were inspired by ancient Greek literature, and Ravel’s sumptuousShéhérazade, three contrasting songsRead more that conjure up exotic moods rather than retelling the stories of the1001 Nights. They are joined by a work by Faz?l Say that is inspired by his native Turkey, but which moves away from the spirit of legend and fantasy:Gezi Park 3belongs to a series of works that he composed in response to the momentous civil protests that took place in in Istanbul in June 2013. Say and Crebassa gave its premiere in Bremen in September 2014, where it was heard as a ‘Ballad for mezzo-soprano, piano and orchestra’. Crebassa’s part is a wordless vocalise and the work is recorded here in a version for voice and piano.

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REVIEW:

Throughout this release, the combination of intelligence, immediacy, and subtlety is utterly compelling and marks this album out as one of the finest French song recitals of recent years. It cannot be recommended highly enough.